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LA Metro presents white paper on community leadership committees and member compensation
Summary
LA Metro executive described a white paper based on the Long Beach–East LA Corridor planning effort that recommends transparent recruitment, early community leadership committees, breakout meetings, field visits and a modest stipend ($200/meeting) to reduce barriers to participation.
Keandra Kyler Dodds, executive officer of Equity and Race at LA Metro, presented a white paper to the California Transportation Commission’s joint meeting with the interagency Equity Advisory Committee describing lessons learned from the Long Beach–East LA Corridor Mobility Investment Plan.
Dodds said the corridor work reframed a previous freeway expansion into a multi‑modal plan that uses local funding and pursues additional federal and state dollars to improve mobility, safety, air quality and economic opportunity. She said the project redirected more than $700 million in corridor funds after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency concluded the earlier freeway proposal could not meet air quality standards.
The white paper recommends forming community leadership committees (CLCs) with transparent scoring criteria for selection, targeted outreach to meet people where they are, meeting formats that mix short presentations with breakout groups and field visits, and efforts to level technical knowledge through planning 101 sessions. Dodds highlighted LA Metro’s advisory body compensation policy, which provided a $200 stipend per meeting to CLC members to offset lost wages, childcare or other participation costs. She said the stipend increased inclusivity and made sustained participation possible for many members.
Committee members asked about retention, outreach and funding sources. Dodds said Metro used a mix of outreach at rail stations, local media and community‑based organizations, and that the corridor planning was funded from local sales tax proceeds set aside for the corridor. She said that while some recommended practices were already in use across Metro, the goal is to standardize them into operating procedures so they become consistently available across teams.
Members and commissioners praised the approach as a model for embedding equity and meaningful community leadership in transportation planning. Staff said the EAC and agency teams will review the white paper and consider how to adapt its practices at the state and district levels.
